Imagine living in ancient Egypt. You are an experienced pyramid builder. A highly respected king just died and you are asked to build a pyramid in his name. You know very well what a big job it is to construct a pyramid. First you would help select the type of pyramid to be built. It would help to look at previous pyramids built, including two of the most interesting: the first pyramid and the biggest pyramid. You would design the pyramid and plan for where the chambers would be. Once this was done, the long building process would begin. If you really were this builder, you would have been working hard for many months, and you probably would have had no idea of how important that pyramid would be many years later. The pyramids of ancient Egypt are a very important part of Art History. There are two main types of pyramids: step pyramids and true pyramids. Step pyramids were built in the third dynasty. They were the first monumental stone structure ever built. They got their name from the stepped sides which were created by building one mastaba (layer of pyramid) on top of another. Step pyramids were not as pleasing to the eye as True Pyramids. Sometimes they had different chambers than True Pyramids. There was usually a descending passage from the North Burial Chamber and underground galleries surrounded all sides but the south side.True pyramids were a natural development to step pyramids, but the structure and construction were very similar. Packing blocks were stacked until the dimension was correct, and then limestone blocks were the finishing touch. The first true pyramid was built after the beginning of the fourth dynasty. One of the first ones was King Sereferu's. His was also the first one to reach great height in True Pyramid form.King Zoser's pyramid was the first pyramid ever built. It was built by Imhotep during the third dynasty. It was a very strong step pyramid. It stayed just as it was built for...

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...INTRODUCTION
The Egyptianpyramids are ancient pyramid-shaped masonry structures located in Egypt. They are known to be one of the seven wonders of the modern world. There are 138 pyramids discovered in Egypt as of 2008. Most were built as tombs for the country's Pharaohs and their consorts during the Old and Middle Kingdom periods. The earliest known Egyptianpyramids are found at Saqqara, northwest of Memphis. The earliest among these is the Pyramid of Djoser which was built during the third dynasty.
The estimate of the number of workers it took to build the pyramids have a wide range from a few thousand, twenty thousand, and up to 100,000.The most famous Egyptianpyramids are those found at Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo. Several of the Giza pyramids are counted among the largest structures ever built. The Pyramid of Khufu at Giza is the largest Egyptianpyramid.
REASON BEHIND BUILDING PYRAMIDS
The pyramids were built to protect the body of the deceased pharaoh. These massive tombs were constructed to withstand the elements of time and were intended to last forever. Most Ancient Egyptians planned for their death and the pharaoh was no exception. His death was much more elaborate than the typical Ancient Egyptian...

...ENGL 101 – Holt
Research Paper – Portfolio Draft
May 4, 2011
Mysterious EgyptianPyramids
The Great Pyramid is the only construction that remains from the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. Egyptianpyramids have always been surrounded by mystery. We know their purpose and who built them, but we are still unsure how and when they were built. Ancient Egypt was one of the most powerful, richest and advanced civilizations in our history. They showed a magnificent knowledge of astronomy, architecture, medicine, accounting, art and much more but it is still amazing how pyramids could be made at that time with primitive tools and without modern technology. While there is much known about the pyramids, there are still many unanswered questions.
Even if we know a lot about the pyramids, there is some general information that should be considered. The Great Pyramid is located at the Giza Plateau in Egypt. Besides the Great Pyramid, on the Giza Plateau were built other two pyramids for pharaohs Khafre and Menkaure, and the affiliated funerary complex. The earliest pyramids were step pyramids that evolved from the simplest form of royal tomb called mastaba (Silverman 168). Putting a massive rectangular block one over another, Egyptian architects came up...

...When most people think of Egypt the first thing to come to mind is pyramids, mummies, camels and a sandy desert. There is much more to Egypt and its history then what people think. Historians know a lot more about the wealthy people of Egypt then about the ordinary people because the monuments were made for the rich and influential. The pyramids of Egypt represent these wealthy people and the leaders throughout their history, known as Pharaohs. Throughout Egypt’s history there was the rise of the Pharaohs, the building of pyramids, and the impact of hieroglyphs.
In 3100 B.C the Nile Valley and Delta joined to form the Nile. It was known as “The Gift of The Nile” because settlers were able to take advantage of the Nile’s annual floods. It turned into an especially productive Agricultural region that was capable of supporting a much larger population. It was “The Gift of The Nile” that made Egypt one of the richest and most powerful nations. Ancient Egypt was divided into Upper and Lower Egypt. Legendary conqueror, Menes, is responsible for the unification of Egypt. Menes is also the founder of Memphis, which was the cultural and political center of Egypt. Menes instituted the role of the Pharaoh. The Egyptian kings were called Pharaohs. They were absolute rulers and claimed to be a descent from the gods. (Factoidz.com, " Egypt and the Rise of Fall of the Pharaohs.")
Some of the most influential...

...Egyptian and Mexican Pyramids
The creation of the Egyptian and Mexican pyramids both had many purposes in their societies. Each type of pyramid and the use of each had some similarities. They each served as a purpose for ceremonies, which was held for religious gatherings. This ties into rituals as well. Certain pyramids in each society had murals and writing on them. They were used for symbols to explain or show something. All pyramids were used for burials, however, the Mexicans buried priests and high rulers and for the Egyptians they were pharaohs. They also had differences among them for the purpose. One of the Mayan’s main purposes was used for landmarks. They rose above the forest so you could see them over the jungle and it was a way to get back to civilization. They also had designs on them. Mayan’s put calendars on them, which falls under writings. The Egyptianpyramids were built years before the Mayan pyramids. The structure of the pyramids differed as well, where the Egyptianpyramids were hollow and had burial chambers inside of them, and the Mayan pyramids were solid and could not have tombs inside of them.
The Egyptianpyramids were built in a series of years in the second century B.C.E. They took about eighty years to...

...Chapter 3: EgyptianArt c. 3500 – 30 BC
• Ancient Egyptian civilization, like the civilizations of Sumer and the Indus Valley, grew up along a great river (Nile) that provided irrigation for agriculture and also a thoroughfare for transport of men and materials.
• Largely a desert country crossed on a SN axis by the Nile river
Nile:
• Central role in Egyptian economy
• Annual floods –constant & dependable occurrence (the flood water carried rich slit which was eventually deposited over the alluvial plain –agriculture)
• Nile not only shaped their lives, it shaped their beliefs
• Along with Nile the Sun was also worshiped
• Sun = Re, father of the gods
• in Egyptianart, nearly everything had a specific or indirect religious significance, and illustrated the special response the people of the Nile valley to their environment.
• Predictability of life >> rising and setting of sun, annual flooding of Nile gave the Egyptian people a sense of order and inevitability & sense of continual rebirth.
• Egyptianart: conservative & formulaic
“Kingdom of the Two Lands”
• sometimes around 3000 BC, the Lower and Upper Egypt were unified –through conquest. The time preceding, the unification is called Predynastic
• the period of time right after the unification –about 3 dynasties – Early Dynastic.
• after that the classification of...

...What Ancient Egypt’s Pyramids Really Stand For
The harsh desert winds, the burning Egyptian sun, and a couple thousands of years has physically decreased the Great Pyramid of Giza’s height by about thirty-one feet, but has had no effect on its strength and power as a symbol of the wondrous society of ancient Egypt. All of the Egyptians’ pyramids display the hierarchy, social values, their education, and their religious beliefs. Thus, the symbolic pyramids that ancient Egypt constructed, specifically the Great Pyramid of Giza, hold intricate explanations about the society, its politics and its religion that would otherwise remain unknown.
The Great Pyramid was built for King Khufu, and it remains today as a strong microcosm for the society, politics, and religion of ancient Egypt. King Khufu, who was the second king of the Fourth Dynasty of his family, reigned from around 2589 to 2566 B.C.E. The construction of this very powerful, often ruthless tyrant’s pyramid most likely began right after he took the throne. 1 The inner casing of the monument consists of 2.3 million low-grade limestone blocks, each weighing from two to fifteen tons. Serving as an outer casing and covering for the inner walls, fine white limestone was used. The first-rate ivory Turah limestone was difficult to quarry, as it was often rare and far away from the building...

...EgyptianArt was once considered to be unchanged, when viewing this art as a whole. EgyptianArt seems to be repetitive pattern of images and ideas. Yet all of these images are uniquely different. Ranging from 3000b.c to 50b.c. Taking the same principles through out the entire period. Which consists of Old, Middle and New Kingdoms. Each dynasty had a different addition to the basic concepts that were established in the beginning, ideas of the artist grew faster and better. Many cultures shared from the influence of EgyptianArt. Even if it was not copied, their artwork was either compared or contrasted with that of the Greeks, Romans, Summerians, Assyrians and Persians. All in one way or another form have come in contact with EgyptianArt.
Art is different variations of expression, either self-expression or cultural. From painting, sculpture, architecture, to funeral preparations to pottery. Art is also a form of communication. Communicating ideas theories or even history. Expressing ideas that cannot be done with words. To take something that is thought to be intangible and shape and mold it into something that can be seen or touched. One culture takes another culture's work and either copies or changes it, to fit into their views and principles. Sometimes the artwork can be...

...The Great Pyramids of Giza
Art is the quality, production, expression, or realm, according to aesthetic principles, of what is beautiful, appealing, or of more than ordinary significance. When looking into a piece of art there are five essential questions that should be answered for it to be fully analyzed. What purpose was this piece of art made? What does this piece of art hope to communicate? How was this Piece of art made? What is the composition of this artwork? And finally, what elements should we notice about this work of art? The Pyramids of Giza are the largest
The Great Pyramid is the most significant of the three large pyramids located on the Giza Plateau. The Great Pyramid was also the first pyramid to be built starting in around 2550 BC. This pyramid was built for the pharaoh Khufu, who ruled Egypt from about 2547-2524 BC. Along with the Khufu’s Great Pyramid his son, Khafre had one built on the Giza Plateau that at a first glance seems larger than his fathers, and Menkaure, Khufu’s grandson, also had one built on the Giza Plateau. The first question asked when looking at these ancient works of art is what purpose was it made for?
In this very early time period Egyptians wanted to preserve the bodies of the dead, and for...